Wrench
Wrench is Electra's repair truck, one of the Components, in Starlight Express. Personality Electra's repair truck is usually the most straight-forward and aggressive of the female components. Where Volta is an ice queen, Joule is animal sensuality, Wrench is butch, practical, lacking any feminine softness about her. She is a character not to be crossed. She is Electra's repair truck, a trained medic on hand at all times who knows how to break bodies as well as repair them. Whenever cast issues have required that a male swing covers a female role, it is usually Wrench who becomes male. This became so common that between 2005-2010 in the Bochum production that Wrench was cast male, and covered by both male and female swings. Male Wrench struggles in personality, as he lacks distinguishing characteristics; where female Wrench is the most masculine of the female components, male Wrench is aggressive but not as aggressive as Krupp, he is effeminate to a degree, but not as elegant and sensual as Purse. He still dances "Pumping Iron" with the girls, but is ignored by Greaseball. Role In the Original Production, we first meet Wrench after Pumping Iron, as Control calls the final entries for the race, and the power drains. Out of the dark shoot lasers, and the Components emerge from the smoke, talking in code. Finally their master appears (AC/DC), Electra, the engine of the future, a composite made from the sum of all the parts of the Components. Wrench is often seen mirroring Krupp. Control calls the Racers forward, each to choose their race partner, and Wrench hooks up with Turnov - this can be construed as part of a master plan by Electra to weaken the competition by having his own people racing with them, however generally the Components are seen to be genuinely supportive of their engines and hope to win. In the original race structure, Turnov and Wrench raced in Heat 3, and were beaten by Poppa and Dustin. The humiliation. In the huge argument following Poppa's qualification for the final (The Rap), Wrench of course obeys and follows her Master, and she is horrified when Pearl leaves him for Greaseball. The Components are, as ever, adoringly following Electra as he meets with Caboose and learns of his nefarious schemes (Wide Smile). Wrench is relegated to the sidelines during the Uphill Final, as the race ends in a dead heat. Some time later, we see Electra and his new race partner, Dinah, an unhappy team, and just before the re-run of the final race, Dinah disconnects Electra. Wrench and the Components are right there, yet Electra chooses to race with Caboose at the last minute, giving the treacherous brake van a place in the final. Between Electra's arrogance, Greaseball's violence, and Caboose's insane meddling, Rusty and Dustin take the lead and win the race! Furious and humiliated, Electra throws a tantrum and swears he'll never be seen there again (No Comeback), leaving his Components behind. But they're present to witness the pitiful train wreck that is what remains of Greaseball and Caboose (One Rock & Roll Too Many), and find the happily ever after of "Light at the End of the Tunnel". In later versions of the show, AC/DC is before Pumping Iron, which means the female components are swayed away from Electra to dance with Greaseball. Wrench dances with Greaseball even when male. In the later London show, Wrench and Turnov raced in Heat 2. In the German show, Wrench did not race until 2018, when she took over from Volta racing with the Japanese Engine, now named Manga. Appearance Wrench Design 1.jpg Wrench Design 2.jpg Gallery Wrench L84 Carole Amphlett 1.jpg Wrench b11 Lauren Mayer 1.jpg Wrench Nz09 Hannah Kee 2.jpg Cast London Broadway Japan / Australia Tours Bochum, Germany US Tour 1989 - 1991 Las Vegas 1993 - 1997 US Tour 2003 - 2004 UK Tours 2004 - 2008 NZ Tour 2009 UK Tour 2012-2013 Trivia In the Bochum and Broadway productions, Wrench is shown to be a crane car. Like refrigerator cars, cranes are diesel-powered. Understandably, Electra would still include her in his train. Crane cars are sometimes known as "big hooks" by railroaders. Category:Characters Category:Components